has anyone tried this stuff? Yerba Mate -it's tea from South America with stimulating properties like coffee, and it's pretty strong, but not overwhelming like coffee can be, but a whole lot stronger than green tea... and it's supposedly good for you. up until about three months ago i drank coffee morning, noon and evening every day, and i've completely switched to mate. i used to get a pain in my side from drinking coffee and feel worn out by the ups and downs of energy throughout the day, but mate is has a steady energy release that feels great. i know i sound like a commercial. i like this stuff so much i'm thinking of opening a Mate Bar.
just looking to hear what other people have to say about it if anything.
I was introduced to maté by a former student of mine, a Brazilian Catholic priest in training. Preparing the stuff was a ritual for him. He was quite disparaging about maté in tea-bag form and insisted that the only way to drink it is to use the leaves in the traditional method. I must say that it is a very refreshing drink. I could get into it like I could get into mint tea Arabic-style if I weren't too deeply indebted to the coffee Mafia.
Yeahs its amazing isn't it..
I got really into this when i was in Argentina and like was said, theres quite strict rituals when it comes to drinking it..
If you did not prepare the mate, then you shouldn't readjust the mate pipe (don't know what else to call it)..
If offered, you shouldn't refuse it.
Theres loads more but i couldn't be arsed typing them out..
Did you try it with sugar? Purists wouldn't but I think its quite nice.
Originally posted by Bosse de NageFunny you mention that. I was in the coffee aisle of the supermarket last weekend and passed by that stuff (yerba mate). I was kind of wondering what it was all about. I may have to pick some up this weekend.
Do you try them out one at a time?
Darth, how do you go about preparing your Yerba Maté?
Originally posted by rbmorrisSounds like the wave of the future. Get your mah-tay franchising options in now!
Funny you mention that. I was in the coffee aisle of the supermarket last weekend and passed by that stuff (yerba mate). I was kind of wondering what it was all about. I may have to pick some up this weekend.
it defintely has energizing effects... i think from plain ol caffine, actually... but i could be wrong.
i would like to learn more abuot the ritualistic aspect of it. i don't use tea bags. i put about two tablespoons of mate (alot) in the bottom of a cup and then poor nearly boiling water over it, then stir. up until recently, i wasn't using a bombilla (the mate spoon), and i would just wait until all the little peices fell to the bottom, then drink. i'd get the stuff in my teeth and mouth, but i like chewing on them. then my girlfriend got me a bombilla for my birthday and so i use that and i have to admit that i like it better this way.
i've prepared it with sugar and cinnamon and nutmeg and soy milk and that's pretty good. you can also drop a few mint leaves in there with it to tweak the taste. i've gotten accoustomed to the natural flavor of it now and add nothing. it tastes like drinking the ghosts of ancient earth. it's something to aquire. i've only met one person who claims to have genuinely liked the taste on the first go. not me. i tolerated it because of the energy it provides, and grew to like it. at first, i thought it tasted a little like horse turd.
Originally posted by Nordlyswhat's rooibus?
We have a big rooibus-hype here at the moment. I hate the stuff. Maté seems to be virtually unknown here, but I occasionally drank it when I was still living in Germany. I must admit I wasn't aware that it also contains caffeine. I never noticed any effect.
Originally posted by NordlysRooibos...drink it black (or red)...don't add milk or sugar...I like it on hot days, when the idea of milky tea or coffee is unbearable but I still can't bring myself to drink plain water.
We have a big rooibus-hype here at the moment. I hate the stuff. Maté seems to be virtually unknown here, but I occasionally drank it when I was still living in Germany. I must admit I wasn't aware that it also contains caffeine. I never noticed any effect.
What is the hype based on? Supposedly it destroys free radicals or something. Any interesting (African?) advertising images?
Originally posted by rbmorrisI think you need a mate cup and bombilla (pipe) to drink it.
Funny you mention that. I was in the coffee aisle of the supermarket last weekend and passed by that stuff (yerba mate). I was kind of wondering what it was all about. I may have to pick some up this weekend.
It takes a while to get used to it, as it has a very pungent taste. I was wandering around Santa Fe in Argentina, and every group/couple of people had 1 person with a thermos flask and mate cup/bombilla.
I think its supposed to suppress appetite as well.
D